Browsing: Army Navy

All that pregame analysis, and everybody forgot about the punter. Navy sophomore Pablo Beltran could turn out to be a key weapon in a game where neither offense figures to have many big-play moments. He’s already shown his stuff once — a 45-yard punt pinned Army at its own 1-yard line midway through the first quarter, and though the Black Knights managed a first down behind some straight-ahead running, they didn’t manage much else. Beltran averaged a school-record 45.1 yards this season, a school record. He was the first punter to start for Navy as a plebe since 1992. He…

The importance of the Army-Navy football rivalry never needs stressed to those on the field and is rarely questioned by those off it. But on Dec. 1, 2001, in Philadelphia, less than three months after terrorists attacked U.S. soil and less than two months after the U.S. invaded Afghanistan, the game’s symbolic link to service and sacrifice resonated in a very real, very immediate way. In the postgame photo above, Army’s Brent Dial (21) and Navy’s Ed Malinowski (10), Chris Wade (43) and Chandler Sims (6) stand united. Dial shows none of the happiness one would expect after a 26-17…

Sunday’s post from the sidelines of a close Army-Navy game may have had history on its side, but it lacked a bit in drama. And color. And focus. And … well, it was 1911 — sports photography has improved a bit over the past 100 years. Case in point, two shots from Military Times staff photographer Mike Morones from the sidelines of the 2011 Army-Navy game: The 27-21 Navy win marked the 10th straight for Annapolis. Senior fullback Alexander Teich (the jumper in the top pic) had 93 yards on 18 carries in his last collegiate game. The contest was…

There are spirit pictures, and then there’s this: About the picture: The submarine/banner holder in question is the ballistic-missile boat Henry Clay, just before it was launched from Newport News, Va., in November 1962. The sub, named for a three-time presidential candidate whose pre-Civil War government service spanned more than half a century, was commissioned in February 1964 and served for nearly 35 years. About the game: President Kennedy watched the Midshipmen make the sub builders proud, cruising to a 34-14 victory at Philadelphia’s Municipal Stadium on Dec. 1, 1962. Two years later, Navy would fall to Army 11-8 in…

A few academy-sports quick hits for a Wednesday afternoon: Army-Navy kickoff set. The Black Knights and Midshipmen will kick off at 3 p.m. Eastern on Dec. 8 at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field, according to a CBS news release. Times for the other Navy games on that release aren’t typos — the Mids will play Notre Dame at 9 a.m. Eastern on Sept. 1 in Dublin, and they will face the Air Force Falcons at 11:30 a.m. Eastern on Oct. 6 in Colorado Springs, Colo. — that’s a 9:30 a.m. local start. Hat tip on the Army-Navy news to the Times…

Three quick academy sports hits to start your week: 1. Back on the bench. Doug Wojcik, who set a variety of Navy assists records while playing alongside all-everything center David Robinson and later served as an assistant coach with the Mids, was hired by the College of Charleston over the weekend to take over for retiring head coach Bobby Cremins. Wojcik was fired last month after seven seasons at Tulsa, compiling a 140-92 record but never reaching the NCAA tournament. Speaking of all-everything college players, Wojcik will be replaced at Tulsa by Kansas assistant Danny Manning. 2. Four-game sweep. There…

We’ll answer the question in advance, because somebody’s going to ask it and some die-hard college football fan is going to roll his eyes over it: “What happens if they tie?” Short answer: Overtime. It’s never happened in the Army-Navy game. It’s only existed in big-time college ball since 1996 — a relative drop in the bucket for a century-plus-old rivalry. For those who only watch one game a year, and it’s this one, the rules are: Each team gets a chance to score from the opponent’s 25-yard-line. If the game’s still tied, they go again. Still tied? Keep going,…

The pagentary’s over. For a few hours, at least, it’s less about history and fancy new uniforms and more about job No. 1 for both teams: Stopping the option run attack. So far, both teams have prevented big gains — the key to slowing down misdirection offenses that can create open space in a hurry. That duty falls primarily to the linebackers, the defense’s “second level,” who have to sift through the fakes and counters in a split second, find the ball and attempt to separate it from the ball carrier. Navy senior outside linebacker Jarred Shannon introduced himself to…